What bothered me was the fact they made it look like if they cannot have a other babies then they can never have a new life and they will forever live under the shadows and memories of what happened in Leningrad. Did any of their "American" children have issues like Anthony? No, if I remember correctly they all turned out to be some super duper nurse, scientist, doctors and what not and grew up pretty spoiled with Alexander doting on them, you know like he should with Anthony. Is this not punishing Anthony for something he had no control over? Why did he go to Vietnam in the first place, he wanted to show his dad he is worthy and he wanted to be like Alexander who was first and foremost a great solider. He looked up to his dad but he never felt like he was good enough, never gotten the kind of emotional connection and approval from him like his siblings had. He went to Vietnam to impress his dad, did their other kids have to do that? NOPE! What was ironic was the fact that they were so mean to each other and miserable parents to Anthony all because she couldn't get pregnant!

I agree that they were messed up and Anthony suffered for it, through no fault of his own. Neither of them was ready to be a parent when Anthony was born and Alexander's experiences in the USSR and the war didn't help, either. I thought Tania was a better mother in TSG than in T/A, where she was depressed and suicidal, not to mention abandoning her not yet three year old son for months.

Speaking of Anthony trying to follow in his father's footsteps (and eclipsing him eventually), I did think it was funny that Tom Richter asked Alexander if the Anthony rescue mission was some kind of attempt to recreate Tania's commando prison break. I guess Alexander had something to prove, too

I also found it interesting how both Alexander and Anthony had such a talent for trusting the wrong people, in marked contrast to the very perceptive Tatiana and Pasha.

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I also regret the fact that the couple Asian female characters that were featured were either crazy, evil or mentally unstabled as in the Vietnamese girl that tricked Anthony and the Indonesian girl that was his first wife. So guess who it took to heal him and complete his life, a young, beautiful and bubbly blonde haired blue eyed American. Go figure.

This is absolutely true. I guess the Vietnamese girl was necessary for the plot, but the Indonesian wife being basically written off in favor of a pretty blonde made me very uncomfortable. I also couldn't help but wonder why a woman would want to get involved with a married man who is twenty years her senior. OTOH, Anthony got involved with a married woman twenty years his senior - though not one who had kids.

I finished reading Children Of Liberty by Paullina Simons a few weeks ago and loved it! From begining to end, I couldn't put the book down. I love how dramatic the book ends and I loved reading about Harry and Jane (Gina)'s journey. I loved reading the ups and downs and challenges of 2 people from totally different worlds. You can only imagine what Harry's life would have been like if he hadn't chosen Gina. This is a MUST read- I have to say, as much as loved TBH, I think Children of Liberty takes the cake. What did everyone else think of the book?

I loved Children of Liberty - I couldn't put the book down. I can't wait for the sequel. This book is a must read; describes the jounrey of 2 people from totally different worlds and how different their lives could have been if they didn't choose each other.